Wheels of Fire

Unlike Disraeli Gears, which was made in days, Wheels of Fire was recorded in small bursts over nearly a year. Sessions with Felix Pappalardi began at IBC Studios in London in July and August 1967 with basic tracks for White Room, Sitting on Top of the World and Born Under a Bad Sign. Work continued at Atlantic in New York, with ten days in February 1968, and finished there in June. Jack Bruce said the band preferred working with Pappalardi and Dowd and spent a long time in the studio so there was no need to rush.

The studio disc used more instruments than the first two albums: glockenspiel, calliope, cello, trumpet, bells, viola and tonette. Baker co-wrote three songs with the jazz pianist Mike Taylor, and Bruce wrote four with Pete Brown, including White Room, Politician and As You Said, the only Cream recording without Clapton. Clapton chose two blues covers, Sitting on Top of the World and Born Under a Bad Sign. Politician came together at a BBC radio session in January 1968.

Pappalardi had wanted a double album from the start. For the live disc, a mobile studio was shipped to the Fillmore Auditorium and Winterland Ballroom for six shows between 7 and 10 March 1968. Pappalardi picked Traintime for Bruce, Toad for Baker, and Spoonful and Crossroads for Clapton. Only Toad came from the Fillmore. The other three were recorded at Winterland.

Atco released it in the US on 14 June 1968 and Polydor in Britain on 9 August. It reached number 1 in the United States, Canada and Australia and number 3 in Britain, and was the first platinum-selling double album. Announcement of the band's split came on 10 July. Melody Maker called the live disc electrifying, while Jann Wenner of Rolling Stone gave the studio disc a poor review and praised the live disc. Rolling Stone ranked it 205 in 2012.